1. Field of the Invention
The invention pertains to an anti-theft locking device that can be applied to a wide variety of electronic components, and more particularly, is related to an anti-theft locking system which incorporates the locking device and to a method of installation on such equipment. Examples to which the invention pertains, include home video and audio components such as TVs, cable boxes, DSS receivers, VCRs, cassette decks, CD players, amplifiers, etc., automobile electronic components such as audio cassette decks, CD players, amplifiers, etc., home and business electronics such as computers that are either desktop, laptop, or floor-standing versions, printers, scanners, fax machines, and any peripheral external devices such as hard drives, CD Rom drives, and disk drives, and other specialized electronic equipment, such as electronic scientific, testing and measuring equipment like oscilloscopes, Coulter Counters, and medical testing and monitoring equipment. The invention could also be applied to the internal components of computers such as the motherboards, electronic cards, hard drives, disk drives, CD Rom drives, etc. Finally, the invention could even be applied to any other type of electronic equipment that is envisioned to have the physical dimensions which would readily allow the invention to be effective in preventing theft.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
In today""s society, break-ins to homes, cars, offices, businesses, retail stores, boats, and any other place that uses, displays, stores, or warehouses various types and sizes of electronic equipment is common. The dollar value of home-based and work-based electronic devices and equipment can be quite substantial, making such components and devices good candidates for being stolen. Generally, the smaller the size, the more common and the less sophisticated the electronic item, the less expensive it will be on a retail level. Nevertheless, even smaller, common, less sophisticated electronic items can sell anywhere from several hundred dollars to several thousands of dollars. Of course, larger electronic items or specialty items with a higher level of sophistication will generally cost much more. Furthermore, many electronic items being manufactured today have physical size and weight characteristics which allow these items to be easily transported and hidden, making them ideal targets for crime. Since most electronic components perform their functions in isolation, a single device can usually be used by others even when it has been removed from its site of application, also adding to the desirability of stealing such items.
Unfortunately, a truly effective anti-theft mechanism has yet to reach the marketplace for protecting these types of devices. For instance, some anti-theft devices have been designed for specific applications, i.e., laptop computers. A typical laptop anti-theft device uses a flexible cable that is attached to the rear of the unit. While this form of anti-theft device may be a mild deterrent for the unsophisticated thief, it provides only minimal deterrence to a seasoned veteran. This is primarily due to the small diameter of the cables and the superficial means of attaching them to the device housing, both of which a thief can easily cut or forcibly remove from the unit without even damaging the usefulness of the laptop itself. Anti-theft devices for home electronic components have typically comprised a locking means on the front of the cabinet in which such devices are stored. Other locking devices introduced for the same application have applied some sort of latching device that attaches as an external add-on to the unit being protected. However, with either of these types of locking devices, the locking means and latch can be easily destroyed and/or removed, without sacrificing the functionality of the equipment that was supposed to be protected. One specific example of an external type of device consists of a steel loop attached to the backside of a desktop computer, in which the steel loop accommodates a steel cable. These supposedly secure anti-theft devices can be easily cut or the component housing can be physically destroyed so that the loop disconnects from the casing of the computer without realistically damaging the functionality and value of the computer, or the components contained within the computer. Another drawback of such anti-theft devices is that physical size, variations, and intended applications of the locking devices are fairly restrictive, often requiring a flexible cable of a diameter that is no greater than one quarter of an inch.
Moreover, home computers and other types of electronic components are additionally vulnerable. For instance, a home computer will have a variety of internal components that have an incremental value for use in other computers. The destruction of a computer housing will not necessarily destroy the internal components inside the housing, thus these internal components will still provide a separate value to a thief even if he destroys the housing or functionality of the component. Currently, there is no protection widely offered on the market to prevent theft of the internal items either.
In the case of computers or other devices containing electronic data, the primary value in the device is often the value of the data itself, and not the hardware. Access to the internal components of a computer is generally only restricted by a small number of screws which hold the housing together and the internal components in place. This makes it possible to remove data storage components, or copy their contained data, with relative ease, and without leaving any readily visible signs of theft or tampering. Again, there is no protection widely offered on the market to prevent, or even deter, this type of incremental theft, tampering, or copying as related to data storage devices.
In addition to the replacement cost of the electronic item that was stolen, there are also ancillary costs associated with such thefts and often these ancillary costs are quite considerable as well. For example, a vehicle break-in may result in only the loss of a stereo component worth a couple hundred of dollars, but significant additional costs can be incurred for example, for replacing a broken window of the vehicle, repairing the destruction of a door lock, replacing a destroyed dashboard; these are in addition to the higher insurance premiums a person can expect to pay after being the victim of a theft and vandalism of this nature. Similar ancillary costs are also associated with break-ins to homes, offices, retail stores, businesses, and so forth. In the case of computer equipment, significant ancillary costs can also be incurred for the loss of valuable data that was stored in the hard drive or disk drives of the company computer. Very often, the value of this lost data far outweighs the value of the computer itself. Moreover, some data can never be replaced, while other data can take significant amounts of employee time to replicate. Thus, businesses are especially vulnerable to stolen data since their ability to operate may be significantly impacted. Tampering or other unauthorized modification to data or software poses additional risk in this same regard. While many companies do have back-up systems, often enough, the back-up systems are stolen along with the other equipment too. Thus, even the storage back-up systems are vulnerable to theft.
It can be appreciated that based on the above-described problems, there still exists a long-felt need to provide an anti-theft locking system and device for protecting the electronic components of the types mentioned above.
It is a primary object of the present invention to provide an anti-theft system for protecting electronic equipment, with each component comprising a housing and a plurality of electronic circuitry disposed in the housing, wherein each housing includes a locking passage formed therethrough, with each locking passage being surrounded or giving the appearance of being surrounded by the electronic circuitry, and a locking assembly inserted within the locking passage such that the housings and electronic circuitry are integrated together, or give the appearance of being integrated together, such that forced removal of the locking assembly will significantly damage the electronic circuitry and the housings, or give the appearance of being vulnerable to significant damage.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an anti-theft system which includes an anchoring base, the base including a hole therein, wherein the locking assembly is inserted through the hole of the base, thereby securing the electronic components to the base so as to prevent removal of the components.
It is an aspect of the invention to provide a locking assembly which comprises a lock device and a constraining device, wherein the constraining device is one of an elongate bar, a flexible cable, a chain, or electronic wire for insertion through each locking passage, the constraining device having a pair of ends held together by the lock device, or in the case of an electronic wire, having a pair of ends that are attached to a theft monitoring system.
It is another aspect of the invention to provide a locking assembly which comprises an elongate bar having at least one threaded end and a lock device, wherein the lock device is a female threaded component integral with the base for receiving the threaded end of the bar.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a method of protecting a plurality of electronic components by providing a respective locking passageway in a housing of each electronic component, then inserting a shared locking assembly into each of the locking passageways formed within the respective housings, wherein the locking assembly connects each of components together as a unit.
The features and advantages of the invention will be further understood upon consideration of the following detailed description of an embodiment of the invention taken in conjunction with the drawings, in which: